Why Decathlon has changed its name to Nolhtaced in three Belgian cities

Sporting goods retailer Decathlon has changed its name to Nohltaced in three Belgian cities– Evere, Namur and Ghent– for a month. Interestingly, Nohltaced is Decathlon written backwards. It will not only feature on the brand’s logo on its website and social media platforms but also on the boards of the showrooms in the three Belgian cities. 

But why has Decathlon done this? The sporting goods company’s aim is to promote “reverse selling”. Under this campaign, Decathlon will allow customers to resell old or unused sporting goods to Decathlon so they can be repaired or resold under warranty. This service is not new as it has been around for quite a while.

“To continue to develop our activities in a sustainable way, we rely heavily on our buy-back service, our offer of second-hand items, our rental service and our repairs,” Arnaurd De Coster, Director of Second Life Nohltaced Belgium, was quoted as saying by RTBF. Decathlon said the objective is to reuse as much equipment as possible to reduce environmental impact and avoid waste apart from allowing consumers to buy good quality sports equipment at lower prices. 

Customers can recover the value of sports equipment via purchase vouchers even if you did not purchase it from Decathlon. These vouchers are valid for around two years and you can spend them on a range of new equipment, second-hand items and rental offers. Items excluded from this offer are underwear, swimwear, socks and helmets. Under this campaign, sporting goods not purchased from Decathlon can also be resold in lieu of vouchers.